Automatic exhaust relief-valve.



No. 663ml Patented nec. n, |900..

G. DE LAVAL. AUTOMATIC EXHAUST RELIEFVALVE.

(Application led June 9, 1900.)

(No Modal.)

fm rafts arti* muon,

GEORGE DE LAVAL, OF CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS.

AUTOMATIC EXHAUST RELlsFmvAu/E.

SPECIFICATION forming part 0f Letters Patent No. 663,631, dated December 11, 1900.

Application led June 9, 1900. Serial No. 19,680. (No model.) l

To' all whom t may concern.:

Be it known that I, GEORGE DE LAVAL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oambridge, county of Middlesex, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Automatic Exhaust Relief-Valves, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like characters on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention relates more particularly to relief-valves used in a branch from the eX- haust-pipe of a condensing-engine, the valve opening toward the atmosphere when the pressure of the exhaust for any reason exceeds that of the atmosphere, the valve seating automatically when the exhaust-pressure drops below that of the atmosphere. In order to prevent concussion or hammer when the valve is thus seated,rsome form of dash-pot is provided, one structure being shown in United States Patent No. 27 0,57 3 and another in United States Patent No. 521,030. The former valve is intended for use with a horizontal exhaust-pipe and the latter with a vertical pipe; but in both instances the dash-pot is outside of the valve-case. Frequently these dash-pots are in the way, and very often the piping is located on the outside of the building, causing the water in the dash-pot to freeze. Oil, glycerin, and other fluids have been employed to obviate freezing, but with indierent success.

My present invention has for its object the production of an automatic relief valve wherein the dash-pot device is located Within the valve-case, so as to be out of the way, and also to prevent freezing should any water collect in it. Means are also provided for holding the valve from its seat when it is desired to run non-condensing.

Various novel features of my invention will be hereinafter described, and particularly pointed out in the following-claims.

Figure l is a top or plan view of a vertical relief-valve embodying one form of my invention, the valve-case being partly broken out. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view thereof on the line sc, Fig. l; and Fig. 3 is also a sectional view of an angle relief-valve with another form of device for holding the valve from its seat.

Referring to Figs. l and 2, I have shown the valvecase A as globular and with openings -at its top and bottom surrounded by annular flanges 2 3, respectively, for connection at the bottom with the exhaust-pipe, a pipe usually being attached to the upper flange 2 to lead the exhaust in any desired direction to the atmosphere. An annular shoulder a in the lower portion of the case has resting uponV it the valve-seat B, shown made as a separate casting, the relief-valve being adapted to rest centrally-threaded hub d2 to receive a headed stud a3, extended up through the valve and through a hollow piston e, said piston having a hollow depending stem c',which rests upon the top of the hub a2 and is held rigidly in place by the head of the stud a3, said head being shown as seating in a recess 6 in the top ofthe piston. A dash-pot f, open at its lowerend, surrounds the piston snugly, as clearly shown in Fig. 2, and is provided with an annular flange f', by which it is secured to the member d of the valve, the lower end of the dash-pot passing through the central opening d2 of 'the upper portion of the valve member. The shank e' of the piston passes through the bearing dx and serves to support and guide the valve below the valve-seat, while the sliding contact of the dash-pot and piston e form a guide for the valve above the seat, thus insuring a very steady movement of the valve without necessitating a top bridge. The piston has a port '7 opening into the dash-pot, and a port 8 is made in the piston-shank below the bearing CZX, said ports permitting the passage of air or steam into the shank and hollow piston,and thus into the dash-pot. When the valve is raised, the steam or air is sucked in, and when the pressure of the exhaust falls below that IOO of the atmosphere the valve will descend, and the slow expulsion of the iiuid from the dashpot through the piston and its shank acts as a cushion to prevent hammer or shock when the valve seats.

It will be manifest that4 the dashpot. is

wholly within the valve-case, and thus is not only entirely out of the way, but it is prevented from freezing should any moisture or water collect in it.

It is desirable sometimes to hold the reliefvalve from its seat-as, for instance, when working the engine non-condensing-and for this purpose I have provided a suitable sustaining device, one form of which is shown in Figs. l and 2. The valve-case d has at one side a transverse opening fitted with a removable cover-plate C, having a closed housing or bonnet CX, which is provided with a stuffing-box c to receive a rotatable shaft or stem h, extended upwardly through the bonnet and threaded at its upper end at h to engage a similarly-threaded bearing c on the top of the bonnet,'the shaft being provided exteriorly with a hand-wheel hx and within the bonnet with a collar h2, Fig. 2. A lever k, fulcrumed at 7c on ears 0X, secured to the cover-plate C, (see dotted lines, Fig. 1,) is bifurcated at its rear end to embrace the shaft or stem h below the collar h2, the bifurcated ends being rounded, as at 7a2, Fig. 2, to engage the collar. The in ner end of the lever lo extends centrally above the valve and through a loop f2, formed on the dash-pot, as herein shown, whereby when the inner end 0f the lever is rocked in the direction of the arrow lO, Fig. 2, the valve will be lifted from its seat and held suspended, such movement of the lever being effected by rotation of the shaft or stem h in such direction as to lower the collar h2. Normally the parts will be in the position shown in Fig. 2, so that when the valve is lifted from its seat the lever 7c can rock to permit such movement.

The valve mechanism shown in Fig. 3 is what is known as an angle relief-valve, the pipe or other connection with the atmosphere being secured to an annular flange 25, surrounding the outlet made in one side of the substantially globular valve-case M.

Thevalve proper, valve-seat, dash-pot, and its coperating piston are substantially the same in Fig. 3 as those hereinbefore described and shown in Figs. l and 2; but in Fig. 3 I have shown another form of device for holding the valve from its seat. The valve-case has a top opening surrounded by an annular ange 26 to receive a flange fm of the partlyglobular bonnet MX, said bonnet having at its top, directly over the longitudinal axis of the valve, a stuffing-box m', provided with 'a threaded bearing m2 for the threaded end n of a shaft or spindle n, extended through the stuffing-box and provided at its exteriorl with ahand-wheel or other suitable device nx. The

inner end of the shaft or stem 'n is extended loosely through a loopf2", secured to or forining a part of the dash-pot, and the shaft is held from withdrawal by means of a suitable nut n2. To lift the valve and hold it from its seat, the shaft n is rotated in the proper direction to thus lift the dash-pot and attached valve. Under normal conditions the shaft will occupy the position shown in Fig. 3, permitting free play up and down of the loopfzo when the valve rises or falls, the hole f30 in ithe'top of the loop being large enough to permit the free passage of the threaded end of the shaft therethrough. With the angle-valve shown the case is provided with a bottoml flange 30 for the steam-pipe connection.

In the practical embodiment of my invention herein illustrated the relative movement of the dash-pot and its cooperating piston is effected by connecting the dash-pot with the valve and the piston with the valve-case.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters l. The valve-case and a contained valveseat, the valve adapted to seat on the latter, a dash-pot Wholly within the case, a coperating piston, means controlled by the valve to effect relative movement of the dash-pot and piston, and positively-acting means to act upon said valve and retain it unseated and fixed at any desired point.

2. The combination with a valve-case and a valve-seat, of a valve, a dash-pot movable with the valve, a cooperating piston fixedly mounted on the case and extended axially ,through the valve into the dash-pot, and a bearing on the side of the valve opposite the dash-pot., to slide on and be guided by the piston, said bearing being extended beyond the plane of the valve-face.

3. The combination with a Valve-case and a valve-seat, of a valve, an inverted dash-pot secured to the upper side of the valve, to control by fluid compression the return of the valve to a seat, a piston cooperating with the dash-pot and having a reduced stein extended through the valve and rigidly secured to the case below the valve-seat, and a bearing on the lower side of the valve, sliding on the shank of the piston to guide the valve.

4:.' The valve-case having a lower opening and a contained valve-seat,'a valve adapted to seat on the latter, a dash-pot mounted on the upper side of the valve and having a closed upper end, and a hollow piston rigidly mounted on the case and extended through the valve into the dash-pot, and having inlet and outlet openings, movement of the valve from its seat being resisted by the formation of a partial vacuum in the dash-pot due to relative movement of the latter and the piston.

5. The valve-case having a lower opening and a contained valve-seat, the valve adapted to seat on the latter, a dash-pot mounted IOO IIO

y opens or shuts.

In testimony `whereof I have signed my name to this speoieation in the presence of 1o two subscribing Witnesses.

GEORGE DE LAVAL.

Witnesses:

JOHN J. FINLAY, HERBERT S. HAMBLETT. 

